This may sound a little odd but I appealed to Berkeley and was admitted to the Spring and bumped off the waitlist at Pepperdine for the Spring. Now I cant decide between the two. I have been to Pepperdine and love the location/people/small campus, but I love Berkeley too. I am a history major and money isn’t important. Can anyone give me some advice about the atmosphere and most importantly the amount of studying kids at Berkeley (especially) and Pepperdine. I’ve visited Pepperdine and am going to visit Berkeley. Any comments/advice?
<p>I live in California and have toured both Pepperdine and UC Berkeley. From my experience, most people I have encountered don't consider Pepperdine to be a top tier school (which Berkeley of course is). Also, Pepperdine is very religious (i.e. required mass, dry campus..etc.), however if this suits your lifestyle that could also be a plus. Berkeley's campus is gorgeous, it has a stellar acadmic reputation and its so close to San Fran...there are an endless amount of cultural offerings in the area. Just my opinions--hope they help!</p>
<p>I wouldn't think twice about chosing Berkeley over Pepperdine...but really its up to you and what you want out of college.</p>
<p>if your liberal, DEFINITELY go to Berkeley! You'd be making a mistake if you didn't probably</p>
<p>Berkeley is definitely more academically oriented. It's an academic haven. People come from all over the world just to set foot on the campus. Congrats on getting in! But you should really decide based on your gut. I hope you'll love Berkeley when you visit. It's a great place to be. But if you don't, then don't pick it just because of prestige.</p>
<p>The one valid (perhaps not) argument everyone comes up for Pepperdine: Malibu, dude!</p>
<p>Berkeley (the city and the school) may not be the most environmentally place on Earth, but it is a great institution. This case of academics vs. locale shouldn't be a case at all -- I would say Berkeley will be the better of the two for you.</p>
<p>When we toured Cal, our tour guide stated that he didn't care what we thought about the school and gave us as close to a non-tour as possible. It was a very dissatisfying experience not to mention that we found his arrogance very annoying. He was more focused on demonstrating how many people he knew on campus by calling out to them and mentioned highlights as an afterthought. When he asked what fields prospective students were considering and said he would point out those buildings, he totally disregarded the input unless reminded. I realize that this is generalizing, but if he was supposed to represent the student population there, we definitely had second thoughts. Plus, with so many people in such a relatively small space, we almost felt claustrophobic on the walks when classes let out.</p>
<p>That said, I would say that Cal definitely trumps Pepperdine in terms of academic reputation. But if you're thinking "location, location, location," Pepperdine's campus (and the weather) wins out.</p>
<p>Thanks guys for all the advice! I think your advice will be very helpful when I check out the canpus. Thanks!</p>
<p>I'm considering appealing to Cal as a transfer student... Would you mind talking a little about your appeal? How did you structure it? What supplemental materials did you include? Fell free to PM me.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>